June 25, 2026
BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN – Brunei Darussalam and Thailand co-chaired the 5th Sub-Regional Counter-Terrorism Policy Forum (SOCTPF) in Bangkok, Thailand on Tuesday, bringing together senior officials from eight countries to discuss efforts to address terrorism and violent extremism in the region.
Leading Brunei Darussalam’s delegation was Acting Permanent Secretary (Security and Law) at the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) Awang Zulhusam bin Haji Abdul Samad, accompanied by senior PMO officials.
The annual forum serves as a platform for senior officials from Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand to exchange views and strengthen sub-regional cooperation in countering terrorism and extremism.
This year’s meeting was co-chaired by Awang Zulhusam on behalf of Brunei Darussalam and Deputy Secretary-General of Thailand’s National Security Council Mr Ruchakorn Napapornpipat.
Discussions focused on emerging trends related to the online dissemination of extremist ideologies, the evolving terrorist threat landscape and related security challenges affecting the sub-region.
During the forum, Brunei Darussalam presented a concept paper on a proposed sub-regional framework for assessing public sentiment towards extremist and terrorist ideologies spread through online platforms.
The framework is expected to serve as the key deliverable when Brunei Darussalam hosts the 6th SOCTPF in 2027.
The initiative aims to strengthen the forum’s efforts by establishing a mechanism that uses public sentiment analysis to measure the effectiveness of counter-terrorism and counter-extremism initiatives at the sub-regional level.
The 5th SOCTPF was held at the Sheraton Royal Orchid Hotel in Bangkok.
Brunei Darussalam will host the 6th SOCTPF in Bandar Seri Begawan next year, which will be co-chaired by Brunei Darussalam and Malaysia.